


A River In Egypt

by Ren



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Gen, I love my skating sons very much, I'm sorry it's 1am and I'm slightly unhinged, Please don't judge me, this is not very serious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-28
Updated: 2017-02-28
Packaged: 2018-09-27 09:23:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9997226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ren/pseuds/Ren
Summary: JJ won bronze at the GPF. But it was a mistake.(A fix-it fic directly inspired by this year's Oscars, in which Otabek is the one who gets third place.)





	

**Author's Note:**

> So I woke up this morning to a message from my sister that said "They gave the Best Picture Award to the wrong film" and immediately my mind went to [this](https://twitter.com/alcoholicrevo/status/836233881338568706). Immediately I showed my unfinished WIPs under a rug so I could write this Very Important and Very Canon story.
> 
> If the Academy can announce the wrong winner, why can't the ISU?! For months I've been saying there was something off with those scores, and now we know the truth! I am 100% convinced that this scene was in the anime but was sadly cut out because of time constraints, like Yuri's Welcome To The Madness exhibition program. We can only hope to see the deleted scene in the DVD/BluRay extras.
> 
> "But, Ren, that's not how skating/scoring/the GPF/the ISU works..." NOPE, I'M NOT LISTENING, THIS IS CANON NOW BYE.

The spotlights shine bright overhead. Yuri is almost blinded by their glare. The audience is just an invisible, clapping mass beyond the edge of the rink. He imagines how he looks to them – the fuchsia accents of his costume flaring neon pink under the stark lights – standing at attention on the top of the podium.

Medal ceremonies are the most boring part of a competition, Yuri thinks. He ought to feel _more_ about this moment – he is after all the youngest skater to win a Grand Prix Final. All he feels, though, is mild annoyance that the ceremony is taking so long.

It's not because Katsudon beat his score in the free program. Of course, it irks Yuri because he knows he could have done better, but that's it. It's all in the past already. Emotionally, he's exhausted himself while he was skating, and then again when they announced the scores.

Yuri's expression barely changes while the president of the ISU puts the medal around his neck. His lips stretch into a forced smile as he murmurs something useless and appropriate to the situation. It's a complete contrast to Katsudon, who's grinning like a fool, almost as if _he_ is the one who won the gold. Katsudon shakes hands with the president, laughing nervously, then squints and looks straight ahead.

No doubt Katsudon is searching for Viktor among the audience. Yuri knows Viktor will be standing somewhere among the clapping crowd. No doubt he'll be wearing that infuriating, happy smile that he's started to show more often in the past few months. Viktor never used to smile like that before Katsudon came along. For the first time in years, Viktor is not on this podium, and yet he looks happier than he was about any of his gold medals. Absurd.

They're giving JJ his medal now. He shakes hands with the president, then straightens up and gives the camera a dazzling smile. Yuri turns away, staring into the distance. It's already the third time he had to share a podium with JJ. At least this time Yuri is the one in the top spot, but even so, the whole situation is annoying.

It's not that Yuri begrudges him his bronze medal. Though… Yes, Yuri definitely begrudges him his bronze medal. It doesn't feel right, it's been nagging at him ever since the scores were announced. Even considering all the multipliers and the technical difficulty of his program, JJ flubbed so many jumps, it's unbelievable that he got as many points as he did. And yet his score, flashing black on white on the huge monitors, was high enough to get him on the podium. Unbelievable.

They're handing out the bouquets now. Yuri has been to enough medal ceremonies already that he could do this blindfolded. He takes the flowers, shakes hands, smiles for the camera. A few more ISU officials approach. Yuri's smile strains, and he shifts to keep his balance on the blades of his skates. He wonders how many more hands he'll have to shake before the evening is over.

Shouldn't they start with the national anthems already? The announcer has already said so twice, the second time in vaguely puzzled tones. Something is happening to the side of the rink, and more and more officials are coming to talk to the higher ups, who are now huddled to the side of the podium.

"What's going on?" Katsudon whispers, leaning up towards Yuri.

Yuri frowns and squints under the spotlights. "No idea." The ISU staff seems to be passing on some kind of document.

By now, the audience's chatter is getting louder, and even the announcer is wondering what this delay is about.

"Is there some problem?" Katsudon wonders out loud.

The ISU president's hushed whispers are loud enough to carry across the ice now, but they're all speaking French and Yuri understands barely one word out of five. From the urgent tones, though, there does seem to be a problem.

Katsudon leans past Yuri. "JJ, do you know what they're– Are you all right?"

JJ's seems to have turned to stone. "I'm fine," he says, and then he forces a smile. "I mean, I haven't won a medal. But I'm fine."

Yuri frowns and turns to Katsudon, who lets out a small nervous laughter. It's not a very funny joke. Meanwhile, the officials are all heading towards the carpet in front of the podium and gesturing for silence. A woman in a headset is rushing forward with a microphone.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the president calls. "If I could have your attention– I'm afraid there has been an issue with the scoring–"

She starts talking about a bug in the program that displayed the wrong the totals, but Yuri just can't seem to take in the words. They can't possibly have gotten the scores _wrong_. This is the final of the Grand Prix, they don't… they can't… it's never happened before. Yuri stands stock still, smile frozen in place, wondering if this is all an elaborate joke.

"I'm afraid this is not a joke," another official says, holding up a sheet of paper. "This is the correct score."

Katsudon glances up at Yuri. "Do you think our scores are also wrong?" he asks, talking out of the corner of his mouth.

Some staff members overhear him. "No, no," one of them hastens to say, waving his hands. "Your scores are correct. Your records are confirmed. It's just _his_ score that–" He starts to point towards JJ and freezes mid-gesture.

JJ doesn't seem to have noticed. He's climbing down from the podium, still wearing that stony expression of his, while the ISU higher-ups apologize over and over for their mistake. JJ takes off his medal, then stands awkwardly at the foot of the podium, unsure of what to do. He glances at the girls who brought in the medals and the flowers, but they're looking at the staff members, also unsure of what to do.

"Please, join me in welcoming the Grand Prix medalist winner," says the ISU president, her voice high-pitched with nerves. "Otabek Altin! Representing his home country of Kazakhstan!"

Yuri hadn't even noticed that all around them flashes were going off by crazy, but he notices now, because suddenly everyone is turning their attention away from the podium. The cameras flash on a corner of the rink where Otabek is standing between Christophe and Phichit.

Otabek looks completely dumbfounded as the president calls his name again. By now, one of the officials is hurrying along the carpet towards him, motioning for him to get up to the podium. Christophe tugs at his jersey, taking it off, straightening Otabek's cravat with quick movements. Phichit grabs Otabek by the shoulders and pushes him towards the ice.

Everyone starts clapping as Otabek skates towards the podium. Katsudon is applauding too, Yuri realizes, and JJ, even though he must hurt like hell. Yuri claps his hands as loudly as he can, until he can barely feel his fingers. The noise in the stadium is deafening.

Normally, a winner would skate around the rink and take a couple of bows before stepping up to the podium, but there's nothing normal about this situation. Otabek skates towards the center of the rink, to where everyone is gathered on the red carpet running up to the podium, and slides to a stop. Looks up to Yuri.

The president of the ISU is the first to go up to Otabek, pushing her colleagues aside, and she alternatively apologizes and congratulates him while pumping his hand. Otabek says something, but the crowd is still clapping – some are even stomping their feet – and Yuri can't hear anything.

JJ steps forward, and there's one weird moment in which he and Otabek stare at each other with no idea of what they're supposed to do. Then JJ holds up the bronze medal and puts it around Otabek's neck. They hug. They both give each other awkward pats on the back. The bouquet changes hands.

Meanwhile, someone has given the announcer the correct scores, because he's repeating them in both French and English, to confirm that yes, this fuckup really is happening, Otabek Altin really did win bronze.

Otabek stumbles across the carpet, which is packed tight with more people than it's supposed to. He looks up at the podium that he's supposed to get on to, and this close Yuri can see just how dazed he is. No wonder, Yuri thinks. Yuri can't even imagine this – being told that his score wasn't good enough to place, only to find out that it is.

Yuri shifts the flowers to his right arm and holds out one hand to Otabek, helps him get on the podium. Otabek's hand is warm under his glove. He squeezes Yuri's fingers in thanks. All around the rink, camera flashes are going off.

Katsudon leans past Yuri. "Congratulations," he says, grinning at Otabek, who now seems close to tears.

This is Kazakhstan's first medal, Yuri remembers. He leans towards Otabek then, pulls him into a tight hug, not caring about the flowers that are getting crushed between the two of them. "I knew you could do it," he says, his voice muffled against Otabek's shoulder. "Congrats!"

Otabek's fingers dig into Yuri's arms as he clings to the hug. "Thank you." His voice sounds close to tears.

Stupidly, infuriatingly, Yuri feels like crying too. He should have known. No way Otabek skated that well and didn't make the podium, it just wouldn't have been fair. But Viktor and Katsudon's drama distracted him, and he didn't have time to go over everyone's score in detail, and anyway who would have expected the ISU to be so incompetent as to get the rankings wrong? This is unprecedented.

The ISU people are starting to leave the ice, rather awkwardly. Yuri looks around but he can't see JJ anywhere. He slipped off while nobody was looking. Poor guy – thinking he won a medal only to be told it was a mistake. Yuri is no fan of his, but he wouldn't wish that on his worse enemy.

Otabek, though… Otabek is pulling himself together, standing at attention ready for the national anthems. He catches Yuri's eye and flashes him a smile.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen," the announcer says, for what's probably the fourth time this evening, "the national anthems."

Yuri is ready for the familiar strands of music, the ones he's heard so often when Viktor was on the podium, on the same spot where he is now. So he's taken aback when he doesn't recognize the anthem that's playing.

One glance at Otabek and he understands – they're playing Kazakhstan's anthem now, even though they're supposed to play Russia's and Japan's first. Of course they fucked this up too. It's like the ISU is doing it on purpose at this point.

"What the hell," Yuri mutters, half-hearted. He looks at Otabek singing along to the words, and smiles, and claps along with everyone else when the anthem is over.


End file.
